XIV 



THE woodpecker's TOOLS : HIS TONGUE 



We have seen how the woodpecker spears his 

 grubs : now we will study his spear. 



There are many interesting points 

 about a woodpecker's tongue, and they 

 are not hard to understand. If a wood- 

 pecker would kindly let us take hold of 

 his tongue and pull it out to its full ex- 

 tent we should be afraid we were " spoil- 

 ing his machinery," for the tongue can 

 be drawn out almost incredibly — be- 

 tween two and three inches in a hairy 

 woodpecker and more in a flicker. A 

 strange-looking object it is, much re- 

 sembling an angle-worm in form, color, 

 and feeling ; for it is round, soft, and Hairy 

 sticky, except at the flat, horny, bayonet- pecker. 

 pointed tip, and as it lies in the mouth it j^^^^) 

 is wrinkled like the wrist of a loose glove ; 

 but it grows smaller and smoother the more we 

 pull it out. Evidently we are only drawing it 

 into its skin. But where does so much tongue 



